In 2012, Hermann Haken, mathematician and physicist, turned 85 years. He became internationally well-known for his contributions in laser physics, solid-state physics, and statistical physics. The interpretation of the laser as a self-organizing system far from equilibrium initiated
the fruitful interdisciplinary eld of synergetics which he founded and established in the 1960s. The following conversation with Hermann Haken took place in February 2013 at Stuttgart University, his academic home since more than half a century. The interview was conducted by Wolfgang Tschacher,
one of Haken's long-time collaborators, and Claudia Bergomi, both at the University of Bern.